MURPHY: FIXTURE RELEASE WILL MAKE IT REAL

Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Jamie Murphy is looking forward to tomorrow’s fixture release, and backed his team-mates to get off to a positive start in the club’s first-ever season in the Premier League.

The Scotsman admitted that the realisation of becoming a Premier League player is yet to fully sink in, but expects the reality will become clearer when Albion find out their season schedule tomorrow morning.

He said, “Nothing has really changed at the moment. We’ll notice it when the fixtures come out and when we play against all the big teams.

“Every team is a big team in the Premier League. Ideally, we want to start off with a win, and we’ll make sure we do the best we can.

“It was always the aim [promotion], when I came in and spoke to the manager. It was obviously going to be difficult, but with the way the club’s run, it was clear that it was ready for the Premier League.

“The only thing left to do was get there on the park. It was no easy feat getting there, it was a hard couple of years but we got there in the end.”

Murphy is expecting a few new faces to join the first-team squad ahead of the upcoming campaign, and believes the togetherness within the group will be crucial in their pursuit of Premier League safety.

“If we do our best then hopefully we’ll be quite comfortable, but it’s up to us on the pitch. Obviously whatever happens in the transfer window as well, that should help us out.

“The togetherness of the squad was a big reason behind why we got promoted. It’s a close-knit group and everyone gets along, supporters one another, both on and off the park.

“If we give everything we have every game, then I’m pretty sure we’ll do alright. We’ve got a great chance to stay in the Premier League, and that’s exactly what we’ll try to do.”